Advances in technology have brought us so much. Communicating across countries and time zones is now as simple as a click of the mouse, and information can be shared freely and easily.

But the internet age has also created an opportunity for the heartless exploitation of children for profit and sexual gratification. Today there are millions of images and videos of child sexual abuse online.

It is now up to all of us to stand up and protect our children, both here in the UK and overseas.

Over the next two days the Prime Minister, David Cameron, and I will be hosting a global conference to galvanise support among the international community in the battle against online child sexual exploitation.

It is a fight we in the UK cannot win alone. An international commitment and a sophisticated response are imperative if we are to bring perpetrators to justice and protect their victims.

As part of our WeProtect summit, delegates from more than 50 countries will meet law enforcement agencies, technology companies and charities to work out how best to tackle this problem.

Here in the UK, we have robust legislation that gives police the powers they need to track down offenders. Last year, more than 1,300 individuals were sentenced for crimes involving indecent images of children in England and Wales - an eight per cent increase since 2010.

Technology firms are also working closely with us. Last year, the UK and US governments announced a new taskforce that collaborates with industry to identify technological solutions to some of the biggest challenges. In May this year, 48 companies came together to brainstorm new solutions and these are now being developed.

However, we know there is still more to do.

We need a technological response to tackle anonymous networks of criminals and we need to see more coordinated action to close the net on perpetrators.

As Home Secretary, I have launched an independent inquiry into child abuse in the UK. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity to get to the truth of the issue, to consider whether public bodies and non-state institutions have taken seriously their duty of care to children, and to learn lessons for the future.

This Government brought the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) into the National Crime Agency (NCA), so it has access to specialist officers who can assist on complex cases, including experts within the National Cyber Crime Unit and officers stationed in more than 40 countries.

What's more, in a significant step to increase the speed of investigations and reduce the duplication of work, this month the UK’s Child Abuse Image Database (CAID) was launched. It marks a watershed moment - bringing together all known child abuse images in the UK on a single, secure database. It is our ambition that next year every police force in England and Wales will be fully connected to this incredible resource.

We have a lot to learn from other countries, too.

Analysis of the Canadian and American systems were hugely helpful in the development of CAID and Interpol’s International Child Sexual Exploitation image database (ICSE) also plays an important role.

The success of our summit depends on sharing knowledge and knocking down barriers.

We owe it to all those who have lost their childhood to sexual exploitation – and those still at risk – to do everything in our power to protect them and put an end to these most disturbing of crimes.