if (!git_default_email[0]) {
                const char *email = getenv("EMAIL");
 
-               if (email && email[0])
+               if (email && email[0]) {
                        strlcpy(git_default_email, email,
                                sizeof(git_default_email));
-               else {
+                       user_ident_explicitly_given |= IDENT_MAIL_GIVEN;
+               } else {
                        if (!pw)
                                pw = getpwuid(getuid());
                        if (!pw)
 
                if ((warn_on_no_name || error_on_no_name) &&
                    name == git_default_name && env_hint) {
-                       fprintf(stderr, env_hint);
+                       fputs(env_hint, stderr);
                        env_hint = NULL; /* warn only once */
                }
                if (error_on_no_name)
        }
 
        strcpy(date, git_default_date);
-       if (!name_addr_only && date_str)
-               parse_date(date_str, date, sizeof(date));
+       if (!name_addr_only && date_str && date_str[0]) {
+               if (parse_date(date_str, date, sizeof(date)) < 0)
+                       die("invalid date format: %s", date_str);
+       }
 
        i = copy(buffer, sizeof(buffer), 0, name);
        i = add_raw(buffer, sizeof(buffer), i, " <");
 
 const char *git_committer_info(int flag)
 {
-       if (getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_NAME") &&
-           getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL"))
-               user_ident_explicitly_given = 1;
+       if (getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_NAME"))
+               user_ident_explicitly_given |= IDENT_NAME_GIVEN;
+       if (getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL"))
+               user_ident_explicitly_given |= IDENT_MAIL_GIVEN;
        return fmt_ident(getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_NAME"),
                         getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL"),
                         getenv("GIT_COMMITTER_DATE"),
                         flag);
 }
+
+int user_ident_sufficiently_given(void)
+{
+#ifndef WINDOWS
+       return (user_ident_explicitly_given & IDENT_MAIL_GIVEN);
+#else
+       return (user_ident_explicitly_given == IDENT_ALL_GIVEN);
+#endif
+}