Sure, and if AC really wanted to not have their network of agents, they could stop dealing through those channels tomorrow. Re-open the ticket counters at the airports. Start accepting briefcases full of cash. Only allow CC reservations a month or two in advance of a flight unless there's some special verification schema. Presumably AC sells their services through agents and through distributors because there's good economic reasons to do so.

Although quite frankly, more mundane measures would have worked just fine here. Verifying the physical CC at check-in for example. Lots of airlines do that globally. Especially for higher-risk reservations.