You signed in and Deeta is empty. No contacts, no deets.
Alarming — but usually explainable, and often fixable.
Why this happens
Deeta keeps your contacts on your iPhone, not on a server. So an account with no data on this device is exactly what you'd expect after any of these:
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You signed in with a different method. Apple, Google and email each make their own account, even with the same address. This is the most common cause.
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You're on a new or reset iPhone. The account came across; the data didn't. If you set it up from an iCloud backup of your old iPhone, Deeta's data can come across too — see Troubleshooting if Deeta says it couldn't unlock it.
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You deleted and reinstalled Deeta. Deleting an app deletes its data. (It doesn't sign you out, though — your iPhone keeps that separately, which is why Deeta may open already signed in.)
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You never finished setting up. If you skipped the import on your first run, there was never anything there.
Deeta usually offers first
If your account has had data before, signing in on a new device brings up a choice rather than an empty app:
Bring your data to this iPhone. This account already has data. Choose how to load it.
Use a backup file you exported is the one that brings everything back. Rebuild from your address book returns the people but not the deets, tags or groups.
If you're looking at an empty Deeta instead, the account never imported anything before.
Getting it back
If you have a backup
Import it. That's the whole answer — see Backing up and restoring.
If you don't
Check you're on the right account first. Sign out, then sign back in with the other method. If your data appears, that was it — stay on that one.
If it's genuinely gone, start again:
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Bring in your iPhone's contacts — Deeta offers this when your account is empty (Add from your contacts), or tap Allow Access on the Contacts tab. Names, numbers, emails and birthdays come straight over.
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Ask people to re-share their cards. Anyone who's shared with you can send it again.
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Deets you'd written yourself aren't recoverable without a backup.
So it doesn't happen again
Export a backup. Now, and any time you're about to change device or reinstall. It's a folder — put it in iCloud Drive or Files and it survives everything.
Turn on Backup reminder in Settings → Alerts for a monthly reminder. Settings → Privacy shows when you last exported, under Export My Data.
Troubleshooting
My contacts are there but the deets aren't. You imported from iPhone Contacts, which carries the standard fields only. Deets exist only in Deeta and come back only from a Deeta backup.
Some contacts came back, not all. Your iPhone's Contacts may itself be partial — check what's in there, and whether Deeta has access to all of it rather than a selection. If Deeta doesn't have full access, Settings shows a banner at the top — Deeta does not have full access to sync your contacts. Tap it to fix access, then tap Sync Now in Settings to bring everyone across.
"Local data couldn't be unlocked." This iPhone was restored from a backup and Deeta's data arrived before the key that opens it. Your account is safe. Wait a few minutes and tap Try again. Check that iCloud Keychain is on and that you're signed in to the same Apple Account as before; a computer backup made without encryption doesn't carry the key. Only tap Delete all Deeta data & start over if you've given up on that data — it permanently deletes the contacts and deets on this iPhone. You can then import an exported backup.
The app says I'm subscribed but everything's gone. Your plan is on your Apple ID, your data is on the device. They're separate; one surviving doesn't imply the other.
I'm sure I never signed out. Signing out doesn't clear anything anyway. An iPhone restore-from-backup can bring the app back without its data if the backup was made before you installed it.
I have an old iPhone still working. Export from it now, before anything else. That's your data.
People were sending me live updates — are those gone too? Their cards are part of this device's data, so yes. If they re-share, you'll have them again. See Live Updates.
Questions
Can Deeta restore my data from its servers? No. There's no copy to restore. That's the trade — nobody at Deeta can read your contacts, and nobody at Deeta can hand them back.
Isn't that risky? It's why backups matter. One export protects everything.
Will syncing between devices arrive? Yes — sync across your devices is arriving in a later release, encrypted so only your devices can read it. Backups are the answer today.
Does deleting the app delete my account? No. The account remains; the device's data doesn't.