diff --git a/cli/cppcheckexecutor.cpp b/cli/cppcheckexecutor.cpp
index a705aa59508..d9dba5c0af9 100644
--- a/cli/cppcheckexecutor.cpp
+++ b/cli/cppcheckexecutor.cpp
@@ -129,7 +129,7 @@ namespace {
             return !mCriticalErrors.empty();
         }
 
-        std::string getCtuInfo() const {
+        const std::string& getCtuInfo() const {
             return mCtuInfo;
         }