diff --git a/locale.c b/locale.c
index 87e11d6..8f5a3b4 100644
--- a/locale.c
+++ b/locale.c
@@ -3247,6 +3247,9 @@ Perl_init_i18nl10n(pTHX_ int printwarn)
 
     const bool locwarn = (printwarn > 1
                           || (          printwarn
+                              &&
+                                 /* Debian specific change - see http://bugs.debian.org/508764 */
+                                 (    ! PerlEnv_getenv("DPKG_RUNNING_VERSION"))
                               && (    ! bad_lang_use_once
                                   || (
                                          /* disallow with "" or "0" */
diff --git a/pod/perllocale.pod b/pod/perllocale.pod
index df2db5c..f621919 100644
--- a/pod/perllocale.pod
+++ b/pod/perllocale.pod
@@ -1297,6 +1297,14 @@ B<NOTE>: C<PERL_BADLANG> only gives you a way to hide the warning message.
 The message tells about some problem in your system's locale support,
 and you should investigate what the problem is.
 
+=item DPKG_RUNNING_VERSION
+
+On Debian systems, if the DPKG_RUNNING_VERSION environment variable is
+set (to any value), the locale failure warnings will be suppressed just
+like with a zero PERL_BADLANG setting. This is done to avoid floods
+of spurious warnings during system upgrades.
+See L<http://bugs.debian.org/508764>.
+
 =back
 
 The following environment variables are not specific to Perl: They are