diff --git a/clients/src/main/java/org/apache/kafka/common/compress/KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream.java b/clients/src/main/java/org/apache/kafka/common/compress/KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream.java
index 85e7f7b9bec9e..e2fbd5ac04d98 100644
--- a/clients/src/main/java/org/apache/kafka/common/compress/KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream.java
+++ b/clients/src/main/java/org/apache/kafka/common/compress/KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream.java
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@
  */
 package org.apache.kafka.common.compress;
 
+import net.jpountz.lz4.LZ4Compressor;
 import net.jpountz.lz4.LZ4Exception;
 import net.jpountz.lz4.LZ4Factory;
 import net.jpountz.lz4.LZ4SafeDecompressor;
@@ -51,6 +52,19 @@ public final class KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream extends InputStream {
     private static final LZ4SafeDecompressor DECOMPRESSOR = LZ4Factory.fastestInstance().safeDecompressor();
     private static final XXHash32 CHECKSUM = XXHashFactory.fastestInstance().hash32();
 
+    private static final RuntimeException BROKEN_LZ4_EXCEPTION;
+    // https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/KAFKA-9203
+    // detect buggy lz4 libraries on the classpath
+    static {
+        RuntimeException exception = null;
+        try {
+            detectBrokenLz4Version();
+        } catch (RuntimeException e) {
+            exception = e;
+        }
+        BROKEN_LZ4_EXCEPTION = exception;
+    }
+
     private final ByteBuffer in;
     private final boolean ignoreFlagDescriptorChecksum;
     private final BufferSupplier bufferSupplier;
@@ -73,16 +87,14 @@ public final class KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream extends InputStream {
      * @throws IOException
      */
     public KafkaLZ4BlockInputStream(ByteBuffer in, BufferSupplier bufferSupplier, boolean ignoreFlagDescriptorChecksum) throws IOException {
+        if (BROKEN_LZ4_EXCEPTION != null) {
+            throw BROKEN_LZ4_EXCEPTION;
+        }
         this.ignoreFlagDescriptorChecksum = ignoreFlagDescriptorChecksum;
         this.in = in.duplicate().order(ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN);
         this.bufferSupplier = bufferSupplier;
         readHeader();
         decompressionBuffer = bufferSupplier.get(maxBlockSize);
-        if (!decompressionBuffer.hasArray() || decompressionBuffer.arrayOffset() != 0) {
-            // require array backed decompression buffer with zero offset
-            // to simplify workaround for https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65
-            throw new RuntimeException("decompression buffer must have backing array with zero array offset");
-        }
         finished = false;
     }
 
@@ -132,10 +144,7 @@ private void readHeader() throws IOException {
 
         int len = in.position() - in.reset().position();
 
-        int hash = in.hasArray() ?
-                       // workaround for https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65
-                       CHECKSUM.hash(in.array(), in.arrayOffset() + in.position(), len, 0) :
-                       CHECKSUM.hash(in, in.position(), len, 0);
+        int hash = CHECKSUM.hash(in, in.position(), len, 0);
         in.position(in.position() + len);
         if (in.get() != (byte) ((hash >> 8) & 0xFF)) {
             throw new IOException(DESCRIPTOR_HASH_MISMATCH);
@@ -173,22 +182,8 @@ private void readBlock() throws IOException {
 
         if (compressed) {
             try {
-                // workaround for https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65
-                final int bufferSize;
-                if (in.hasArray()) {
-                    bufferSize = DECOMPRESSOR.decompress(
-                        in.array(),
-                        in.position() + in.arrayOffset(),
-                        blockSize,
-                        decompressionBuffer.array(),
-                        0,
-                        maxBlockSize
-                    );
-                } else {
-                    // decompressionBuffer has zero arrayOffset, so we don't need to worry about
-                    // https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65
-                    bufferSize = DECOMPRESSOR.decompress(in, in.position(), blockSize, decompressionBuffer, 0, maxBlockSize);
-                }
+                final int bufferSize = DECOMPRESSOR.decompress(in, in.position(), blockSize, decompressionBuffer, 0,
+                    maxBlockSize);
                 decompressionBuffer.position(0);
                 decompressionBuffer.limit(bufferSize);
                 decompressedBuffer = decompressionBuffer;
@@ -202,10 +197,7 @@ private void readBlock() throws IOException {
 
         // verify checksum
         if (flg.isBlockChecksumSet()) {
-            // workaround for https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65
-            int hash = in.hasArray() ?
-                       CHECKSUM.hash(in.array(), in.arrayOffset() + in.position(), blockSize, 0) :
-                       CHECKSUM.hash(in, in.position(), blockSize, 0);
+            int hash = CHECKSUM.hash(in, in.position(), blockSize, 0);
             in.position(in.position() + blockSize);
             if (hash != in.getInt()) {
                 throw new IOException(BLOCK_HASH_MISMATCH);
@@ -288,4 +280,39 @@ public void reset() {
     public boolean markSupported() {
         return false;
     }
+
+    /**
+     * Checks whether the version of lz4 on the classpath has the fix for reading from ByteBuffers with
+     * non-zero array offsets (see https://github.com/lz4/lz4-java/pull/65)
+     */
+    static void detectBrokenLz4Version() {
+        byte[] source = new byte[]{1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3};
+        final LZ4Compressor compressor = LZ4Factory.fastestInstance().fastCompressor();
+
+        final byte[] compressed = new byte[compressor.maxCompressedLength(source.length)];
+        final int compressedLength = compressor.compress(source, 0, source.length, compressed, 0,
+                                                         compressed.length);
+
+        // allocate an array-backed ByteBuffer with non-zero array-offset containing the compressed data
+        // a buggy decompressor will read the data from the beginning of the underlying array instead of
+        // the beginning of the ByteBuffer, failing to decompress the invalid data.
+        final byte[] zeroes = {0, 0, 0, 0, 0};
+        ByteBuffer nonZeroOffsetBuffer = ByteBuffer
+            .allocate(zeroes.length + compressed.length) // allocates the backing array with extra space to offset the data
+            .put(zeroes) // prepend invalid bytes (zeros) before the compressed data in the array
+            .slice() // create a new ByteBuffer sharing the underlying array, offset to start on the compressed data
+            .put(compressed); // write the compressed data at the beginning of this new buffer
+
+        ByteBuffer dest = ByteBuffer.allocate(source.length);
+        try {
+            DECOMPRESSOR.decompress(nonZeroOffsetBuffer, 0, compressedLength, dest, 0, source.length);
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new RuntimeException("Kafka has detected detected a buggy lz4-java library (< 1.4.x) on the classpath."
+                                       + " If you are using Kafka client libraries, make sure your application does not"
+                                       + " accidentally override the version provided by Kafka or include multiple versions"
+                                       + " of the library on the classpath. The lz4-java version on the classpath should"
+                                       + " match the version the Kafka client libraries depend on. Adding -verbose:class"
+                                       + " to your JVM arguments may help understand which lz4-java version is getting loaded.", e);
+        }
+    }
 }