On hosting without SSH access, a common pattern is to open update-core.php (the WordPress update screen) with Playwright and read "what version is WordPress core currently running" straight off the page text. In one deployment, the recorded core version came back as something like 1.7.11 — a number that has never existed for WordPress core.
Note: update-core.php is the WordPress admin's "Updates" page, listing pending updates for core, plugins, themes, and translations all on one screen.
What was actually happening
That page doesn't only show the core version string — it's packed with version numbers belonging to pending plugin and translation updates too. A line like "Update Plugin X to 1.7.11" is typical.
# First implementation — grabs the first N.N.N-shaped number on the page
