diff --git a/tools/esp_prov/requirements.txt b/tools/esp_prov/requirements.txt
index f21e32fb5aa..3904e0d9e44 100644
--- a/tools/esp_prov/requirements.txt
+++ b/tools/esp_prov/requirements.txt
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 future
-protobuf
+protobuf<=3.20.1
 cryptography