[pmx]

They didn't distribute the bar codes, they had peoples bring their laptops to IT where the IT staff used the scanner to scan the code from the screen of a machine they themselves controlled.

[account42]

You're right that the article later on describes it like that but then the concerns about distributing the key or dictating it over the phone don't make sense.

[drekipus]

The concern was that they would stuff it up and have troubles trying to dictate 48 keys.

Not that someone was going to listen in and steal it