There was a system where they rigged the test so it seemed more impressive than it actually was. I bet that's the case here.
For the majority of the cold war the launch codes were set to something like 00000 or 11111 and it was on a wall plaque in the silo. It was because the military thought that the executive branch would take too long to act. I do not have the exact reference but it is easily found with a quick search.
Wouldn't surprise me.